导出博客文章BALTIMORE -- All that has transpired for the Baltimore Ravens this month has put them in position for, as safety Eric Weddle put it, A December to Remember.
Bobby Cox Jersey .The Ravens followed a winless October with a 3-1 November, capped by a 19-14 win over the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday.Baltimore (6-5) climbed back into a tie with Pittsburgh atop the AFC North with five games to go.We have to win every game, we feel, this last stretch, Weddle said.The Bengals (3-7-1) feel the same way. The difference is, that might not be good enough to get them into the postseason for the sixth consecutive year.We have been able to control it ourselves. Now we need help, coach Marvin Lewis said.After spending five straight Decembers fighting for playoff position, Cincinnati is now in a situation where one more loss may end its postseason hopes.It starts to wear on you, cornerback Dre Kirkpatrick said. Im a winner. Ive never been in this situation. But at the end of the day, when youre a competitor you keep competing, especially when your back is against the wall.Some things we learned about the Ravens and Bengals on Sunday:PERFECT AND IMPERFECT: Ravens kicker Justin Tucker has been perfect in 11 games this year. After connecting from 52, 57 , 54 and 36 yards, Tucker is 27 for 27 and has made all 15 of his conversion attempts.It was the 11th time Tucker has kicked at least four field goals in a game. Baltimore is 10-1 when that happens.To be on this kind of roll is good, but it doesnt end today, Tucker said. Hopefully this is something that would help carry our team all the way to the playoffs.Tuckers counterpart Sunday, Cincinnatis Mike Nugent, missed his third straight extra point try (over two games) and has misfired on four of 23 conversion attempts this year.TIPPING HIS HAND: A handful of Andy Daltons 22 incompletions came when Ravens defenders tipped his passes at the line of scrimmage, sending spirals everywhere but toward their intended targets.Since Dalton stands 6-foot-2, it seemed like a concerted effort by the Baltimore defense to simply reach for the ball instead of applying an all-out rush.Id have to watch (film), but my guess is they werent rushing as much, just putting their hands up, Dalton said.Dalton was sacked three times and lost two fumbles. In his defense, he played without injured wide receiver A.J. Green and running back Giovani Bernard and was backed by a running game that could muster only 64 yards on 20 attempts.ELVIS IN THE BUILDING: The return of Elvis Dumervil was a big factor in Baltimores strong defensive effort.Playing in his third game of the season and for the first time in five weeks, the Ravens sack specialist stripped Dalton of the ball with just over a minute left to seal the victory.It was a great start, Dumervil said. Im still a little rusty, but Im fine-tuning things and hopefully I can be peaking at the right time.The road back from foot surgery has been difficult for the five-time Pro Bowl linebacker. Dumervil missed the first three games of the season before seeing action in back-to-back games in early October. That was it until Sunday.For him to play so well is satisfying for him, Im sure, coach John Harbaugh said, but its really satisfying for me and everyone else.MISSING MAN FORMATION: With Bernard (ACL) out for the season and Green (hamstring) sidelined, the Bengals offense looked elsewhere for production. Halfback Rex Burkhead averaged 5.8 yards on each of his five carries against the NFLs top rushing defense, and wide receiver Tyler Boyd made five catches for 62 yards.It felt good to get out there, get your hand on the ball and get some touches, Burkhead said. I feel like I could have played better. Im never satisfied. I always look for ways to improve.KOCHS BIG DAY: Tucker wasnt the only special teams star for the Ravens. Punter Sam Koch averaged 44.4 yards per kick and dropped four of his five punts inside the 20.He also ran the clock out on the final play, prancing around in the end zone while his teammates literally held off the Cincinnati rush.Koch eventually ran out of the end zone for a safety. There were multiple Ravens holding on the play -- intentionally -- because a game can end on a play that features an offensive infraction.---For more NFL coverage:
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Dansby Swanson Jersey .J. -- Marty Brodeur beat the Pittsburgh Penguins yet again.
Phil Niekro Jersey . -- Charlie Graham stopped 67 shots as the Belleville Bulls edged the visiting Guelph Storm 6-5 on Saturday in Ontario Hockey League action.
http://www.baseballbravesproshop.com/orlando-cepeda-braves-jersey/ . It was the kind of score that might make everyone else wonder which course he was playing. Except that Graeme McDowell saw the whole thing. Crouched behind the 10th green at Sheshan International, McDowell looked over at the powerful American and said, "Ive probably seen 18 of the best drives Ive seen all year in the last two days. SEATTLE -- The Seattle Mariners demoted former No. 2 overall pick Dustin Ackley on Monday in the hopes he can rediscover his swing in the minors. The Mariners optioned the 25-year-old second baseman to Triple-A Tacoma before opening a series against the San Diego Padres and selected prospect Nick Franklin from Tacoma to take his place. Ackley is the second young player the Mariners were counting on this season to get sent down, joining Jesus Montero. Seattle needed improvement from Ackley and Montero this season to get better offensively. Instead, theyre now both playing in the minors trying to solve problems at the plate. "It was just time," Seattle manager Eric Wedge said. "Obviously, we fought for the guy for quite a period of time now and wanted to make it work up here and not have to do that. Ultimately, we couldnt take it any further." Montero was sent down late last week after the club determined his career as a fulltime catcher was essentially over. The Mariners sent him to the minors to focus on hitting and learning the fundamentals of first base so he could be an option there. The reasons for Ackleys demotion are similar -- his struggles at the plate -- but his play in the field remained strong despite his hitting problems. Ackley was bothered by an ankle injury for much of last season, which led to fundamental breakdowns in his swing. Ackley kept tinkering with his swing early in this season, and he had appeared to overcome a slow first few weeks when he raised his average to .255 on May 4. But his average plummeted from there, as Ackley collected just six hits in the next 16 games, hitting.111 during that stretch. He regularly fell behind in counts, and Wedge saw a progressive lack of aggressiveness in Ackleys swing. Ackley was hitting .205 after Sunday, with just five extra-baase hits in 45 games.
Hank Aaron Jersey. "Sometimes you get into a scenario as a big league hitter where you lose your feel, and I think that some of that was going on with him," Seattle general manager Jack Zduriencik said. "None of us have the exact answers. But we do know that if we remove him from the bright lights from the major leagues and let him go down to Triple-A and regain his stroke -- again the history of what this guy has done in his career just stares you right in the face. That hes got to be a big league hitter. The issue is he hasnt been producing up here and he just needs to go back." Franklins promotion completes a rapid rise through the Mariners farm system. He was taken in the first round in 2009 out of high school and quickly made his way to Triple-A by the middle of last season. He was hitting .324 with four homers and 20 RBIs in 30 games with Tacoma this season. Hell primarily play second base. "I want to take a look at him. Its a great opportunity to take a look at him," Wedge said. "Well let him get settled today and start him tomorrow." Seattle also optioned reliever Lucas Luetge and recalled pitcher Hector Noesi from Tacoma. Noesi was brought in as protection in case Seattle needed a long reliever out of the bullpen, with struggling starters Aaron Harang and Brandon Maurer going the next two games and the Mariners playing 13 innings the day before. The Mariners also designated for assignment minor league outfielder Francisco Martinez to clear a 40-man spot for Franklin, a move that makes Seattles trade with Detroit in 2011 look even worse. The Mariners sent Doug Fister to the Tigers for three players, the only one of whom to make the big leagues is reliever Charlie Furbush. Meanwhile, Fister has become an anchor in the Tigers rotation. ' ' '